HBO didn’t wait long to renew House of the Dragon. Soon after the first episode dropped—with the largest audience for any new original series in HBO history—the company announced the Game of Thrones prequel would be returning for a second season.
“We are beyond proud of what the entire House of the Dragon team has accomplished with season one. Our phenomenal cast and crew undertook a massive challenge and exceeded all expectations, delivering a show that has already established itself as must-see-TV,” Francesca Orsi, the Executive Vice President of HBO Programming, said in a statement. “We couldn’t be more excited to continue bringing to life the epic saga of House Targaryen with season two.” Season one of House of the Dragon garnered eight Emmy nominations, including the biggest category of the evening: Best Drama Series.
Season two picks up right where season one left off, as a new teaser for the season depicts. “There is no war so hateful to the Gods as a war between kin,” Rhaenys (Eve Best) says. “And no war so bloody as a war between dragons.”:
House of the Dragon is set two centuries before the events of Game of Thrones, and follows House Targaryen as they descend into a civil war over who should inherit the throne after King Viserys I (Paddy Considine). We can expect season two to pick off right where the plot left off in season one.
“Season 1 was setting the table for a very bloody feast to come,” co-creator Ryan Condal explained. “The reason that I wanted to really spend our time doing this is because I wanted everybody to understand who all of these characters were and the long history they had behind them — behind their fathers and their grandfathers — that led us to this point where they end up fighting a civil war against each other. I’m really interested in picking up with all of those characters that we spent all of this time introducing, particularly Rhaenyra and Alicent’s families, and seeing what happens now that we’ve flipped the chessboard over and spilled the pieces on the ground. How do all those react? That’s the story that we tell in season 2 and beyond.” Season two, Condal adds, will still “very much” be the story of Alicent and Rhaenyra.
In April 2023, Condal shared, “I’m excited to pick up where we left off. Now we get to fall into the more traditional rhythms of storytelling and Game of Thrones. We’ve always talked about this particular tale, George [R.R. Martin] has too, of being a Shakespearean or Greek tragedy. This series is very much about a house tearing itself apart from within. Now that all those pieces have been set on the board, I’m really excited to tell the next chapter, to see what happens now that Viserys is gone and no longer keeping a lid on things.”
The key cast is returning.
Olivia Cooke (Alicent Hightower), Emma D’Arcy (Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen) and Matt Smith (Prince Daemon Targaryen) will all reprise their roles, as are Fabien Frankel (Criston Cole), Eve Best (Rhaenys Targaryen), Steve Toussain (Corlys Velaryon), Rhys Ifans (Otto Hightower), and Sonoya Mizuno (Mysaria).
The next generation of Targaryens will all return as well: Tom Glynn-Carney (Aegon II Targaryen), Ewan Mitchell (Aemond Targaryen), and Phia Saban (Helena Targaryen), Bethany Antonia (Baela Targaryen), Phoebe Campbell (Rhanea Targaryen), and Harry Collet (Jacaerys Velaryon).
The younger versions of Rhaenyra and Alicent, played by Milly Alcock and Emily Carney, respectively, are not expected to return. However, creator Ryan Condal didn’t entirely rule out future appearances. “I mean, look, I don’t know,” he explained. Younger Rhaenyra and Alicent “are not a part of the story that we’re telling, yet.” The key here is “yet”—Condal leaves the door open for the future.
